Skip to main content

tv   Greta Van Susteren  FOX News  June 18, 2012 10:00pm-11:00pm EDT

10:00 pm
the two senators. senator sessions and grassley are here to tell you. get ready. any day now, but in the meantime, it's cloaked in see sk secrecy. is president obama's national health care law constitutional or not? now today rush limbaugh talking about obama care. >> these business owners are scared to death of the future. they don't know what's in store, but they have a good idea, and they're frightened. they're frightened of obama care. by the way, a lot of people were expecting the court to announce its obama care decision today, but no, so next monday the 25th looks like the day. the stor story is that they're l working on this opinion, and they're working diligently to get it right. now, i don't know -- i don't remember who told me this. it was in a chat earlier this morning, but i would think this thing is already written.
10:01 pm
if they're still working on it, i would be dumbfounded, but i could be wrong about that. anyway, that decision's coming monday. >> greta: could it be tomorrow? later in the week, next monday? later than that? will the supreme court keep us in suspension even longer. texas toarn attorney general grg abbott joins us. good evening. >> good evening, greta. >> greta: you're going to tell me the whole thing is unconstitution i can't teluncon. >> that's exactly right. we believe that in part based upon what the justices said them ithemselves from the bench durig three days of oral arguments whicwhere the justices powerfuly articulated the claim we've been making all along since texas and the other 25 states filed this lawsuit, and that is that this mandate is unprecedented. as justice kennedy said from the bench, this reshapes the historic relationship between individuals on the one hand and government on the other hand, and greta, this decision is
10:02 pm
going to shape the future arc of the united states constitution and impact this country for decades. >> greta: all right. but regardless of what the questions were and your deep seated desire and what you think is the intellectually right answer, the fact is we've all been surprised by judges' decision. is that not a fair statement and you likewise could be surprised come tomorrow or the next day or next week? >> well, it is a fair statement. as you know, i served on the texas supreme court myself and i know many lawyers walked away thinking i was going to decide one way when it turned out i decided a different way. we can't take complete stock in what the justices said. we do take a great confidence, though, based upon the robust way that justices, whether it be kennedy, chief justice roberts, justice alito, justice scalia robustly attacked the argument made by the united states solicitor general on behalf of obama care and even more so when
10:03 pm
you saw a sense of urgency and deep concern by the justices when they weighed and considered whether or not the case of the individual mandate should be severed from the remainder of the law. so we walked away from the united states supreme court feeling very confident about what the outcome of this would be, but understanding that there is no fair conclusive way we can predict. we can hope for the best and be prepared for the worst. >> greta: i assume that you would also agree that the supreme court's decision is not what would be the effect should it hold it constitutional or unconstitutional. it's whether simply it is constitutional or not. then we move to the second part if you agree with that. the second question is if it is upheld as constitutional completely, what is the impact on your state? >> if the law is upheld completely, then the impact on our state will be one that saves billions of dollars for taxpayers who will not have to pay for this unprecedented expansion of the health care and
10:04 pm
medicaid system. the other is that we will be able to return. >> greta: that's if it's reversed. if the statute is upheld. >> if it's upheld? >> greta: upheld. yes. >> well, two things, greta, if it's upheld. one is we'll be looking at other potential legal challenges that could be waged. if you recall, i it was nancy pelosi herself that said we have to pass the law to find out what's in it. we have seen ever since then with new regulations being issued by health and human services such as the contra contraceptive mandate, there are new things coming out all the time. as these new mandates and regulations come forward if the law is upheld, it could lead to further legal action. however, however, greta, there is another avenue, and that is if mitt romney is elected president, he has articulated that he would, one, grant waivers to all 50 states which would mean that the state of texas would have a waiver from obama care until such time as
10:05 pm
the united states congress is able to pass and repeal a replacement of the obama care law. >> greta: 26% of your state is not insured. your state is in a tough position. what are you going to do for those 26%, maybe nothing if the statute is reversed. >> both the state of texas and the united states of america agree that we can do a better job. we need to be more responsive with regard to health care in this country. we will find solutions. however, greta, we will find solutions that are constitutional, not that violate the constitution. >> greta: attorney general, thank you. i know like everybody else, you're anxiously awaiting the decision. thank you, sir. >> thank you, greta. >> greta: the mandate may or may not survive, but senior democrats tell the associated press the obama administration plans to move ahead with other parts of the health care law no matter what. of course, that assumes the supreme court does not throw the entire law out. while we wait, one o what are te
10:06 pm
democrats plan? emily, nice to see you. what is the democrats' plan should the mandate be tossed out? >> we actually haven't heard much from the depths yet. we've been hearing all along they're continuing forward with implement agency both on the admiadministrative and congressl levels. it's all dependent upon how much of this law actually remains in place when the supreme court decide. if -- if the mandate goes down, other parts could survive. democrats today were saying they'll keep going ahead with all of those parts of the law that would still remain. >> you are far more steeped in -- in than i. explain this to me. i thought the mandate was the chief funding mechanism. that was the way to fund all those other parts that the democrats want to keep still alive. if i'm right, number one. number two, if the mandate is struck, how do the democrats plan to fund all these other parts they want to keep alive? >> you're right. the mandate is the part that gets insurance companies and
10:07 pm
providers about the law because it opens up this huge pool of then enrollees for them, a lot more people buying health care insurance. they're getting services now but not paying them through insurance. if that's not in place, the rest of the law and the rest of the law is upheld, right now democrats are saying well, maybe we make it happen. you saw that. >> greta: where do we get the money? >> three insures last week said they would continue with a lot of the provisions in the law already even if the whole law goes downpour because they're popular, they say they can do it. a lot of states have laws to keep the provisions in place. even if the whole law goes down, some insurers are saying they can keep it up. >> greta: it's hard for me to believe that insurance companies are so mag nan muss, that if the funding mechanism is struck,
10:08 pm
they can say we're good guys and not in the business to make money, we're in the heart business to help people, i've never seen it. for better or worse, they're in it to make money and make a profit. how can they possibly make a profit if the mandate which funds it is struck? >> they're saying that some provisions of the law, like the pre-existing conditions, not charging older people or sicker people more for their premiums than young questioneer people, y wouldn't be able to do that. >> greta: that's the whole -- not the whole, but one of the things the democrats were pushing or were supportive is the fact it would allow people with pre-existing problems to get insurance. if the insurance company strikes that down, sounds like we're back to where we were. >> we could be. the insurance companies say if you make us keep up with your requirements and you take away the mandates, the premiums will rise. you remember the justice talking about the death spiral for insurance companies if the mandate goes down and they still have to comply with all the other requirements.
10:09 pm
>> greta: for some reason, i mean, i don't know which way the supreme court is going to decide, but there's no servability clause in the statute. that means if you declare one part unconstitutional like the mandate here, the rest of it stands. does anyone believe that the supreme court could strike just the mandate and let the rest of the statute survive? >> that is a possibility that people are expecting. i don't think it's as expected as either the whole thing stands or the whole thing goes down. those seem to be the two most likely scenarios. the obama administration was trying to make the argument that if the mandate goes down, some of these other consumer protections need to go down with it because they're inextrickably linked. the justices didn't seem to buy the argument but we're not exactly sure how they're going to go. >> greta: in this huge health care bill, is there any mechanism to up our enthusiasm about waste and fraud? is there any way to collect that administration? >> the administration said there are a lot of provisions in here to change waste and fraud. they recognize that over the
10:10 pm
past few years they've not been doing a very good job with collecting waste and fraud in medicare and medicaid. they started a bunch of new provisions really over the last couple of years, part of which were independent, part of which were part of this health care law. they say they're getting huge returns on their investment. these things are so early, it's hard t to say whether they'll be affect if i have thieffective i. >> greta: we'll see what happens in the next few days. it's down to the wire. emily, thank you. >> thank you. >> greta: the latest in the showdown over operation fast and furious. one year after the whistle blower exposed the scandal, he's not happy with the government's response. >> i'm here today because it's been a year since the hearing and the families don't have no answers. i knew we were walking guns. maybe nobody actually said we were walking guns, but that's what we're doing. as for the contempt issue, to me, that's chilling. i don't want content t condolee.
10:11 pm
the department of justice shouldn't be in a position where people are accusing it of being in contempt of congress. >> greta: time is running out for attorney general eric holder. he's staring down a contempt of congress vote on wednesday, and tomorrow, only 24 hours before the vote on wednesday, attorney general holer will go back to capitol hill to meet privately with lawmakers including house oversight chair iss and senator chuck grassley. we spoke with senator grassley a short time ago. senator, tomorrow you're going to meet with the attorney general of the united states, eric holder. at least you've been invited to the meeting. where do we stand on fast and furious and the attorney general? >> well, first of all, the documents have been subpoenaed, only a very small percentage of those documents have actually been delivered, and they would not have been delivered without a espn. there's been several hearings before the house committee under chairman issa, and there haven't really been answers, and we have plenty of information to know
10:12 pm
that there's a lot more documents out there that are going to tell the truth about justice officials being involved in fast and furious and knowing about it a long time before they admitted to us that they knew about it, and so tomorrow we hope to get the documents that we wouldn't otherwise get. >> greta: why would you think you would get them? he said he wants to meet with you. if you're really going to get them, you know, he could send over a government vehicle. >> well, if you're cynical, i'm cynical as well. after 18 months of being stonewalled, you have ever reason to be cynical, but the house of representatives, according to congressman issa, is ready to have his committee issue contempt citations against attorney general holder, and it's my understanding the house is committed to bringing that up if the committee votes it out. now, what the meeting hopefully is about tomorrow, but i won't know until it's over, is that the attorney general is going to
10:13 pm
deliver the documents and avoid the contempt citation. >> greta: if he doesn't deliver the documents tomorrow but shows up and says let's talk about it. >> then i think that that's not a good faith effort from my point of view. it's a matter of either the contempt citation or the documents, and i'm not in the house of representatives, and i won't have a vote on this issue, but i hope the house is going to move ahead with a contempt citation if the documents aren't delivered. >> greta: have you spoken to congressman issa in the last few days about this? >> yes, i have. >> greta: what's the conversation been? well, the conversation has been basically as far as i'm concerned, it isn't a question of just some of the documents being delivered, it's everything, what we call before the february 4th letter of 2011 that they sent us which, by the way, they lied in because they withdrew the letter later on. they admitted that there wasn't any fast and furious.
10:14 pm
we want pre-february 4th documents as well as post february 4th documents. >> greta: did congressman issa indicate to you in the last few days in any way that he would budge and negotiate on the number of documents that he wants? >> he has not. he has said he's going to be firm on getting the documents and all of these documents and presumably they'll move forward. >> greta: you expect that the attorney general shows up tomorrow with the documents in hand? >> that's what i would expect, but i don't think it's going to happen. i think that they're going to try to play games with us as long as they can to get through the election because i think there's probably things in this -- in these documents that indicate that people high up in government knew what the situation is and it could be embarrassing to this administration. now, that's my supposition. otherwise, why would we be stonewalled on little things that any know we already know that all we want is the
10:15 pm
documents from them? >> greta: senator, thank you, sir. >> you bet. >> greta: straight ahead, is a fancy hawaiian resort necessary for a 300 person judges' conference on the taxpayers dime? could the meeting hol justices e meeting some place else? how about a high school gym. now the ninth circuit chief judge has responded to a letter. what does his response letter say i? you'll hear what's in it when senator jeff sessions goes on the record, next. also did president obama violate his oath of office? former attorney general is sounding alarms about the president's new immigration policy. why? former attorney general alberto gonzalez is here to tell you. [ male announcer ] don't miss d lobster's four course seafo feast,
10:16 pm
just $14.99. start with soup, salad and cheddar bay biscuits then choose one of 7 entrees plus dessert! four perfect courses, just $14.99. come into red lobster and sea food differently.
10:17 pm
four perfect courses, just $14.99. avoid bad.fats. don't go over 2000... 1200 calories a day. carbs are bad. carbs are good.
10:18 pm
the story keeps changing. so i'm not listening... to anyone but myself. i know better nutrition when i see it: great grains. great grains cereal starts whole and stays whole. see the seam? more processed flakes look nothing like naturalrains. you can't argue with nutrition you can see. great grains. search great grains and see for yourself. for multi grain flakes tt are anxcellent source of fiber try great grains banana nut crunch and cranberry almond crunch.
10:19 pm
>> greta: golf, tennis, snorkling at a hawaiian resort and spa. what does that sound like to you, a judicial convention or a vacation? sure sounds like a pleasure trip to us, but judges from ninth circuit defending their plans for a maui conference, a conference that could cost you, the taxpayers, more than $1 million. in a letter to the ninth circuit, two g.o.p. senators questioned the need for such a lavish trip. we so spok spoke with the senata
10:20 pm
short time ago. senators, nice to see you, sir. >> glad to be with you. >> i'll start with you, senator grassley. you received a letter in response to your may 18th letter about this ninth circuit judicial conference in hawaii. the chief judge has now replied to your letter. are you satisfied? >> absolutely not. it seems like they expressed very much unconcern and very unapologetic about spending a million dollars for a conference in maui, hawaii. that could probably be done by teleconferencing or the very least, they could do like a lot of other crn conferences do, mae not have a conference as often as they do, and more importantly, it seems to me very essential that they look at alternatives or maybe not having a conference. >> greta: senator sessions, are you satisfied with the letter from the chief judge? >> no. aagreai agree with chuck is we'e
10:21 pm
authorized to do this, we're been doing it since 19 44, we think it's good. people like to go to hawaii. we have better attendance in hawaii. there's no recognition of the million plus that's spent, 40% of that is borrowed money. the united states government is borrowing 40 cents of every dollar we spend spend. i think e entire government is lax and in denial about the danger of our debt, but i really think there's no circuit that comes close to the expenditure size of the ninth circuit conferences. >> there are other officers in the judicial branch of government like the budget people that are in charge of the judicial conference, they talk about how we have cut expenditures by 5%, our bucket has been cut -- our budget has been cut by 5%, we have to lay off people. it's kind of a case of priorities and i would think that an expensive conference like this would not have as high a priority as maybe taking care
10:22 pm
of other things when you don't have the money to do it. >> a couple things struck me about the letter. number one is the chief judge writes in part, as you know, circuit crveses are authorized by law. that is indeed true. what he doesn't put in this letter, and i thought it was significant, i went back and looked at the law, it says the chief judge of each circuit may hold a conference. it's not like everyone's holding a gun to his head that he has to hold these conferences. >> well, others don't. others are not having conferences this year. there are 12 circuits. only seven are having a conference this year, and for the fourth time in nine years, the ninth circuit goes to hawaii where they have one circuit judge and 28 or so circuit judges in the remaining part of the circuit. they don't go there. >> greta: it's not just nine justices or 10 or 27 or whatever. it's 300 government workers in the judicial system that go to this, right, senator? >> they spend half of their day in conferencing and the other
10:23 pm
half of the day recreation is the way that i view the program of the conference. >> greta: when you say conference, i imagine senator sessions as a lawyer probably feels the same way as i might about these conferences. how much -- i mean, even the meetings that they have, how much of these meetings even are necessary to any sort of product for the american people? >> it's a time to get together, judges like to do that. they like to invite lawyers and come together and there may be some benefit from that, but certainly many of the conferences are totally irrelevant to many of the participants there, and there are large portions of the day that are not filled with conferences, and judges are not, to my knowledge, required to take roll. >> greta: let me be a sinic. these are these conferences that, first of all, some lawyers get invited, so it's a tad bit like popularity contest, i guess if i can be a cynic. would you agree with me?
10:24 pm
>> judges invite private practitioners who are honored to be invited. >> greta: and then the lawyers who don'go to some meetings get continuing legal education credits, but there's no indication, or at least the chief judge doesn't say there's any attendance taken at these meetings before their afternoon or late afternoon recreation as senator grassley says. >> or a conference seminar on how to use an ipad is what i saw in one of the programs as an example. >> greta: there anything you can do about this? >> i think there is. first of all, i do think the chief justice is already taking some steps to be more frugal in the courts. >> greta: meaning justice roberts. chief justice roberts. other circuits are showing some discipline and frugality, and i think the message needs to be delivered to the ninth and any other circuit that when they have a conference, the cost ought to be reduced.
10:25 pm
we've never been in a situation where our budget committee colleagues, senator grassley and i, faced such a debt crisis. we're in a deep debt crisis. much of our bureaucracy doesn't recognize it. it's still business as usual where i indicated every 40 cents of dollar spent on that conference is borrowed because that's how much in debt we are. >> greta: the other 60 is paid for by the taxpayers, the other 60 cents. does the chief judge have a tenure, or is that unfair? does the chief judge of the ninth circuit have a tenure in terms of recognizing the money spent in this conference? >> well, as i said, i think it's unconcern and unapologetic about it and it's business as usual, and it's an attitude that we don't care about what congress thinks about how we spend the money. president obama taking heat for his new executive order on immigration. why does former attorney general
10:26 pm
alberto gonzalez say the order could land the president in hot water? also, a super soaker this father's day. kids across the country giving their dads a big surprise. all the fun is caught on camera and you'll see it coming up. man: there's a cattle guard, take a right. do you have any idea where you're going ? wherever the wind takes me. this is so off course. nature can surprise you sometimes... next time, you drive. next time, signal your turn. ...that's why we got a subaru. love wherever the road takes you. sfx: sounds of marching band and crowd cheering sfx: sounds of marching band and crowd cheering so, i'm walking down the street,
10:27 pm
x: sounds of marching band and crowd cheering just you know walking, sfx: sounds of marching bandnd and crowd cheering and i found myself in the middle of this paradeeet, x: sounds of marching band and crowd cheering honoring america's troops. sfx: sounds of marching bandnd and crowd cheering which is actually in tquite fitting becauseadeeet, x: sounds of marching band and crowd cheering geico has been serving e military for over 75 years. aawh no, look, i know this is about the troops and not about me. right, but i don't look like that. who can i write a letter to about this? geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. [ male announcer ] at amway, we use the best of nature, science and research
10:28 pm
to develop and manufacture our products to the highest quality standards. ♪ in fact, amway offers a 180-day satisfaction guarantee. because amway believes the aces our products ome from... are just as important as the places they'll go. amway conveys quality. to learn more, contact an amway independent business owner.
10:29 pm
in here, great food demands a great presentation. so at&t showed corporate caterers how to beer collaborate by using a mobile solution, in a whole new way. using real-time photo sharing abilities, they can create and maintain high standards, from kitchen to table. this technology allows us to collaborate with r drivers to make a better experience for our customers. [ male announcer ] it's a network of possibilities -- helping you do what you do... even better. ♪ >> greta: did president obama violate his oath of office? former attorney general alberto gonzalez said the answer may be yes. he's raising red flags about the new order on immigration that would spare thousands of illegal immigrants brought here by their
10:30 pm
parents from deportation. he joins us tonight. good evening, sir. >> goo evening, greta. how are you. >> tell me your thoughts on the president's signing of this executive order and what is your problem with it? >> well, my problem is it's a temporary fix for a very complicated situation. i think most people will say that we need to have comprehensive immigration reform, and we need something that cannot be undone by the next president or by the next congress. you know, prosecutors, as you know, have a great deal of discretion in making charging decisions based upon charging policy, based upon circumstances, based upon law enforcement priorities and resources, but generally you don't exclude an entire class of individuals from being subject to the law, and i think in this particular case president obama had put himself in the pentagon where he is subject to criticism, that he is ignoring the role of congress by ignoring
10:31 pm
the law and that potentially an argument can be made that he's violated his oath of office to make sure that the laws are faithfully executed. but from my perspective, what's really important here is the importance to try to look at immigration reform or something that's absolutely crucial for our country and i'm hopeful that at least this action is going to be a catalyst for discussion and debate and it's going to move the congress and move the president, whoever the president is, after this election, to focus on comprehensive immigration reform. > >> greta: you raise a very interesting issue, but one is the issue o of prosecute prosecl discretion. we don't have the resources to pick up every person who commit every crime. i suppose what makes this difference is this is a presentation pronouncement and executive order and excludes an entire class of people, an
10:32 pm
entire group, and we haven't seen prosecutorial discretion exercised like that. that's the first question. the second question is that it's done now, six months out from the election when something he laid out a much more comprehensive plan in july of 2010 when he had the house and the senate and the white house, and it fell on deaf ears. that makes it a little bit spirks. >> no question about it. the timing is very peculiar. the question is on record speaking to a hispanic audience, telling the hispanic audience that he had no authority to do what they wanted which was to suspend deportations without changing the constitution, and now suddenly he finds he has the authority, so the timing, of course, one can only conclude that is is in order to try to gather support within the hispanic community. listen. with respect to prosecutorial resources, i understand and i agree that resources should be aallocated first to the most
10:33 pm
serious crimes, but again, when you suspend the enforcement of a law to entire classes of individuals, that is going to subject the president as we're witnessing here to criticism that, in fact, he is ignoring the law, ignoring the role of congress. >> greta: is there any way this can be reviewed? what's the vehicle? i mean, this executive order. >> i don't think so. i think to the extent it's reviewable, it's going to be reviewable in the court of public opinion, quite frankly. greta, my hope is we're talking about it tonight, we're talking about innocent kids which, by the way, i do support the intent of what the president was trying to do here. i do believe that these children should not pay for the sins of their parents. what i have a problem with is the way in which the president did it. i also have a problem in that what the president did does not address the issue of providing additional border security, does not discourage workers from hiring undocumented immigrants, does not deal with via
10:34 pm
overstayers, and from my perspective, it's wet short of what we need -- well short of what we need to deal with our immigration challenges, and i'm concerned that this action while maybe well intentioned in terms of helping these kids is going to relieve the pressure to pursue a very difficult comprehensive solution. >> greta: i guess i'll take it one step further. the fact that we have a house, a senate, republicans, democrats, this administration or any administrations, as we all know, this is a very serious problem. unless people sort of work on solutions, we're only going to discuss it every four years when it comes upon election times and everyone wants the hispanic vote. >> no question about it. i understand how tough this is because it affects our national security, it affects our forng policy, it -- foreign policy, it affects facilities, it affects economic policies. we elect our leaders in washington to deal with these kind of issues. only they have the ability to develop a very smart
10:35 pm
comprehensive plan that's going to make measuring safer and it's going to compliment our economic policies. it's time for republicans and democrats to come together and find common ground on the difficult issue on behalf of the american people. >> greta: they asked for the job, so they should do it. they should come up with a resolution. thank you. nice to see you. thank you, greta could it coming up, senator marco rubio. it's not donald trump. what does that person mean when they call him a professional apprentice. president obama is facing a new opponent in the presidential race. how can that be, and how is it? you'll find out. it's just two minutes away. [ male announcer ] at scottrade,
10:36 pm
we believe the more you know, the better you trade. so we have ongoing webinars and interactive learning, plus, in-branch seminars at over 500 locations, where our dedicated support teams help you know more so your money can do more. [ rodger ] at scottrade, seven dollar trades are just the start. our teams have the information you want when you need it. it's anothereason more investors are saying... [ all ] i'm with scottrade.
10:37 pm
[ engine turns over ] [ male announcer ] we created the luxury crossover and kept turning the page, writing the next chapter for the rx and lexus. see your lexus dealer. >> greta: senator john kerry is jumping into the race for the white house, but wait. it's not what you think. president obama tapping senator kerry to help him with debate rehearsals. the 2004 democratic presentation nominee will pay the role of
10:38 pm
governor mitt romney in mock debates. why is senator kerry the best man for the job? first, here's the senior senator from massachusetts so he knows governor romney's record and his campaign style. also, democrats consider senator kerry one of their most skilled debaters. he was created for strong debates against president bush. david axelrod calls senator kerry the obvious choice. president obama and governor romney will debate three times this fall. governor romney has not yet chose and mock debate opponent, so we want to know what you think. who should governor romney select as his sparring partner? go to gretawire.com and tell us. we're back in two. i went to a small high school. the teacher that comes to mind for me is my high school math teacher, dr. gilmore. i mean he could teach. he was there for us, even if we needed him in college. you could call him, you had his phone number.
10:39 pm
he was just focused on making sure we were gonna be successful. he would never give up on any of us. tell me you have good insurance. yup, i've got... [ voice of dennis ] ...allstate. really? i was afraid you'd have some cut-rate policy. [ normal vce ] nope, i've got... [ voice of dennis ] the allstate value plan. it's their most affordable car insurance -- and you still get an allstate agent. i too have... [ voice of dennis ] allstate. [ normal voice ] same agent and everything.
10:40 pm
it's like we're connected. no we're not. yeah, we are. no...we're not. ♪ ask an allstate agent about the value plan. are you in good hands? >> here's your fox business brief. u.s. markets trading in a tight raping as crisis wary investors wait the results of the greek
10:41 pm
election. the dow was down 25 points. world leaders gathering in mexico for a g-20 summit which is expected to be dominated about concerns about the crisis in the euro zone. president obama made his first comments on the election in greece. he said the outcome of votes indicate the positive prospect for the country to continue on a path of reform. and confidence among u.s. builders hitting a five-year high in june. the national association of home builders sentiment index rising 29. readings below 50 indicate negative feeling about the market. the indecks hasn't reached that level of 2006, the peak of the housing boom. to find fox business in your area, log onto foxbusiness.com. the fox business network giving you the power to prosper. >> greta: senator marco rubio has been called the michael jordan of republican politics and is rumored to be on the vice-president short list. "washington post" reporter manuel wrote a new book called
10:42 pm
the rise of marco rubio. nice to see you. >> great to be here could it okay. the name of the book is the rise of marco rubio. is he still headed upward? >> no doubt. the sky's the limit, i would say. >> greta: you know, where does it start? i read your book. i actually thought -- i read the background but i thought the pivotal point in this political race is when he beat governor crist to get the nomination to become u.s. senator. >> he was down so much in the polls, nobody would have given him a chance. >> in a few short days i will have the extraordinary privilege and honor of joining the united states senate. but i do so with my eyes wide open. >> but he recognized some things that other people didn't recognize, and one of them was that he saw that the at a party was going to be a force, a big force, and you know, it's weird when you look back at that race.
10:43 pm
charlie crist actually tried to portray the tea party as extremists. marco rubio was embracing the tea party. >> greta: it's interesting to me that you write how when crist announced that he was going to run for juice senator, he was -- for u.s. senator, he was endorsed by senator o'connell and senator cornyn, and then marco rubio had senator jim dement. >> that was huge for him. mike huckabee was also really big. there was something else i came across in talking with a lot of people. around that time when senator dement and when mike huckabee were publicly coming out for marco rubio, there were a whole lot of establishment republicans and many of them spoke to me about this confidentially who had gun to have doubts about crist, and they were very quietly moving over into the marco rubio camp, and they were trying to figure out a way to
10:44 pm
sort of publicly distance them from crist, but they had to do it slowly and methodically. >> greta: do people in florida like him? he's a national figure, but take me back to his early days when he was running even as a representive. the people of florida, do the democrats like him? can he work with people? >> yeah. it's interesting because in talking to people, i found that there was a pattern with marco rubio, and i came to think of it as almost an apprentice. marco rubio is the kind of guy who when you meet him for the first time, he impresses you, and he did that over and over again in his political career, and he became essential a professional apprentice. take, for example, jeb bush. jeb bush was the governor of florida, extremely powerful,
10:45 pm
extremely popular, marco rubio impressed jeb bush. jeb bush lifted him up and helped him get to the next level, and he's continuing to help him today. >> without further ado, i give you our new leader, marco rubio. >> greta: your research uncovered this whole -- about his background, and correct me if i'm wrong, but senator rubio thought his parents, his family, or at least hi he said publiclys family came from cuba. what's the story, what's the truth about his family? >> you know, this was something that i really came across by chance. i looked through a lot of records to do this book, and in the course of just doing some routine research about his family because he talks about his family so much, they're so critical to the core of his political identity, i came across some records that said that his family came to the united states in 1956, and that
10:46 pm
differed with the story that senator rubio had been talking about for a long time which is they had come over in 1959 and that they had been forced to leave the island because of castro taking over. you know, does that change fundamentally who marco rubio is? i don't think so. i think that he is still a product of a community of people who feel exiled from cuba, either pushed off or unable to return. his parents were unable to return. it's one of those simple fact checking things you do. >> greta: it was a big huge surprise when you dug that information up. i thought it was unbelievably fair in your book towards senator rubio. two things. you quoted a scholar, a cuban scholar, correct me if i'm
10:47 pm
wrong, who said it didn't make any difference because you still have the fear about going back and it's stal still part of your heritage. in the afterword you quoted him at the tail end of the book about how, and that he himself said that discrepancy turned out to be a blessing in disguise for him. >> yeah. it forced him to dig through old shoe boxes and look at old records. it forced him to ask for questions than he had been asking, and i'm -- i'm glad to t you noticed that in the book because i want the book to be a fair take on senator rubio who is an important figure in american politics right now. i'll lay out everything for people to make their -- their own judgments. i think that the reference that you're talking about which is a statement that he made in his
10:48 pm
speech was really a sign of him trying to embrace that controversy and turn it into a positive which is something that he's been very good at throughout his political career. >> greta: and tomorrow night, senator marco rubio goes on the record from his family's journey from cuba to america to his own political journey. you'll hear senator rubio's rubs story firsthand. we catch up with him while riding a the senate train. straight ahead, he's known for winning, but is actor charlie sheen calling it quits? wait until you hear what the unpredictable sheen said now. get ahead of it! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap a day helps defend against digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. hit me! [ female announcer ] live the regular life. phillips'. [ female announcer ] live the regular life. every bite goes above and beyond the call of deliciousness. that's a big 10-4 kosher. with no fillers, by-products,
10:49 pm
artificial flavors or colors. hebrew national. the better-than-a-hot dog- hot dog. focus lolo, focust sanya let's do this i am from baltimore south carolina... bloomington, california... austin, texas... we are all here to represent the country we love this is for everyone back home it's go time. across america, we're all committed to team usa.
10:50 pm
10:51 pm
10:52 pm
>> greta: here's the best of the rest. more than a year after a very public downward spiral, charlie sheen is making a tv comeback. he said it will be his last. he will retire from acting after wrapping up the fx comedy anger management. the father of five wants to focus on soccer games and amusement parks. you have to hear this to believe it. a man gets angry because a deli doesn't make his sandwich right. what does he do? he calls 9-1-1. >> i specifically asked for little turkey, a little ham, and a lot of cheese, and a lot of of
10:53 pm
mayonnaise, and they gave me a hard time. >> who is this? >> i just wo wonder if you coul- >> you're calling 9-1-1 because you don't like the way they're making your sandwich? >> exactly. >> don't buy it. >> okay. the deli owner said the man ordered 14 sandwiches and he said they were all made just the way he asked. and crowds gather in connecticut. what was everyone looking at? a 365-pound bear hanging out in a tree three feet up. the bear climbed up the tree behind a local motel and stayed up there for hours. they got him down with a tranquilizer dart. he will be released into the wild and there you have the best of the rest. coming up, jimmy kim mel likes to make people laugh. this father's day the joke is on him. we'll show you ... next. [ male announcer ] imagine facing the day
10:54 pm
with less chronic osteoarthritis pain. imagine living your life with less chronic low back pain. imagine you, with less pain. cymbalta can help. cymbalta is fda-approved to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain. one non-narcotic pill a day, every day, can help reduce this pain. tell your doctor right away if your mood worsens, you have unusual changes in mood or behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not approved for children under 18. people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk.
10:55 pm
severe liver problems, some fatal, were reported. signs include abdominal pain and yellowing skin or eyes. tell your doctor about all your medicines, including those for migraine and while on cymbalta, call right away if you have high fever, confusion and stiff muscles or serious allergic skin reactions like blisters, peeling rash, hives, or mouth sores to address possible life-threatening conditions. talk about your alcohol use, liver diase and before you reduce or stop cymbalta. dizziness or fainting may ocr upon standing. ask your doctor about cymbalta. imagine you with less pain. cymbalta can help. go to cymbalta.com to learn about a free trial offer.
10:56 pm
♪ [muc plays] ♪ [music plays]
10:57 pm
dude you don't understand, this is my dad's car. look at the car! my dad's gonna kill me dude... [ male announcer ] the security of a 2012 iihs top safety pick. the volkswagen passat. that's the power of german engineering. right now lease the 2012 passat for $209 a month. visit vwdealer.com today. >> greta: it's time for last call. jimmy kimmel up to his practical jokes again this,
10:58 pm
father's day, he asks viewers to spray their dad with a hose, take a look. >> hey, dad? >> what are you doing? ah! stop! >> i love you, dad. >> i love you, too. >> happy father's day. >> happy father's day. >> greta: that is funny. that is your last call. make sure you go to greta wire.com and let us know what you thought too tonight's show. there is an open thread. greta wire. o'reilly.
10:59 pm
>> bill: the o'reilly factor is on. tonight. >> he should have worked on this years ago if he felt seriously about this, he should have taken action when he had a democrat house and senate. >> all hell breaking loose because president obama is issuing a quasiamnesty to about 800,000 illegal aliens. >> it is the right thing to do. >> but it could also be the illegal thing to do. >> it's simply constitutional decency. this is out and out lawlessness. >> bill: tonight the factor will analyze the legality of new immigration stance. also charges of racism against those who oppose it? >> they oppose him not for his policy and political view but for who he is, an african-american. thank you sam donaldson. >> an explosive factor this evening. the president and illegal immigration. >> caution, you are about to enter the no spin zone. the factor begins right now.